


Acting on Impure Intentions

by volee_weva



Category: Borderlands (Video Games)
Genre: Alcohol, Arm Wrestling, Drinking, M/M, Rarepair, Unresolved Sexual Tension
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-05
Updated: 2019-12-05
Packaged: 2021-02-26 04:47:24
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,470
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21677722
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/volee_weva/pseuds/volee_weva
Summary: "Because, as all of Pandora knew, none of his intentions had ever been pure, and challenging Axton to an arm wrestling match was like a big beacon of his lack of self preservation at the moment."...A drunken night in the Crimson Raiders headquarters leads to more than Salvador has bargained for.
Relationships: Axton/Salvador (Borderlands)
Comments: 2
Kudos: 25





	Acting on Impure Intentions

**Author's Note:**

> What do you mean you don't write oneshots based on a gif from an unsung Disney short?
> 
> Inspired by:  
> https://media1.popsugar-assets.com/files/thumbor/ziFWCJlLMiVBeXS2HEUpdSXFsVQ/fit-in/1024x1024/filters:format_auto-!!-:strip_icc-!!-/2015/11/04/825/n/3019466/d233a6ab9c53e7ea_tumblr_nx66lvOu3g1szij3so4_500/i/Disney-Short-John-Henry-Arm-Wrestling-GIFs.gif

"Hey, Axton."

Salvador's grin was painted across his face, feral and toothy, as the happy daze of alcohol created bubbles of light in the corners of his periphery. It's not like he could even feel guilty for getting trashed. They were between missions, and none of them had seen hide nor tail of Roland and the gang. So, nothing better to do that take a night to get beyond smashed.

There was a low hum of activity around the Crimson Raider's HQ. Maya was letting Tina tell her a bed time story that was full of guts and blood and explosions in their communal bedroom. Gaige tinkered away downstairs on some new addition to her Deathtrap, with Zer0 giving their approval through nods and LED displays of thumbs up. Kreig was off doing God knows what. Axton sat across from him on the floor, face flushed with drink and an uninhibited smile. And Salvador was just drunk enough to have an idea.

He set his arm up, elbow down on the low table between them. 

"Axton, arm wrestle me."

Axton took a swig of Rakk Ale and gave a happy sigh after. Small amber droplets found a home in his short, almost translucent facial hair, and Salvador couldn't take his eyes away from them. He wondered if they would taste more like ale or Axton. He willed the thought away with whatever self control was left in his alcohol soaked mind as the Commando wiped the stray drops of liquid from the corner of his mouth. 

"Oh, you're on, Sal." He grinned, scooting himself closer to the table and grabbing Salvador's hand with a tight, warm squeeze. Calluses brushed calluses and Salvador suddenly felt much warmer than he had before Axton had taken his hand.

Because, as all of Pandora knew, none of his intentions had ever been pure, and challenging Axton to an arm wrestling match was like a big beacon of his lack of self preservation at the moment. Somewhere between blasting bandits and staging a rebellion against Hyperion, he had developed a soft spot for Axton. Not like his soft spot for Gaige, who was reckless enough to be mistaken for his sister, but something deeper. More bubbling and raw. Something where he thought about Axton anytime he had a free moment, the Commando's devil-may-care persona permeating his brain and making Salvador's eyes wander on the battlefield.

He knew he was an idiot for indulging these feelings when it would never work. Salvador was... Salvador. He had as many warrants out for his arrest as there were Skags on Pandora, and he knew full well he was never going to be the type for love. Even after he got saddled with the Crimson Raiders and had fallen face first into a rag tag family. And especially after Axton had unceremoniously wedged his way into Salvador's heart.

Axton, whose hand was gripping his tightly, eyes sparkling with determination. 

Salvador knew, drunk or sober, that he was physically stronger than Axton. While the Commando had strength training in his background, Salvador has pure, unbridled power. Enough to snap Axton's arm in half and use the bone as a toothpick, if he so chose. But, the thrill of such a simple touch would definitely handicap him in this test of strength.

They pushed against each other in a fluid back and forth, almost like a dance. The Gunzerker would let his companion seem to win, only to push back quickly and turn the tides. Axton smiled at him, meeting his eyes with that warm expression. Salvador looked away, and focused his attention on Axton's hand. The feeling of his hand in his, gripped tight around his own, the trembling of muscles being exerted.

Salvador knew he shouldn't indulge too long. He was dangerously close to letting out a secret he didn't dare speak. He flicked his arm down, taking Axton's with his, holding it down for a few seconds.

"Ha," He grinned, giving the Commando's hand a self indulgent squeeze before releasing it. "Too easy."

Axton pouted for the briefest moment, eyes flicking from his own hand to Salvador's. He brought his arm back up to the table and wiggled his fingers. 

"Best two out of three?" Axton waggled his brows and smiled, and, dammit, that smile was infectious. Salvador couldn't resist either the challenge or that smile. 

Salvador clapped his hand into Axton's as he met his eyes. "You want to lose that badly?"

Axton winked, "Like I'll lose." 

Salvador's chest warmed, and he tightened his fingers around the solider's and pushed. Axton met his eyes and pushed back, with more force than he had before, which made Salvador blink rapidly as he processed it. There was a sort of beckoning in Axton's eyes, and Salvador couldn't look away. Before he could push back, the back of Salvador's hand tapped the table. He furrowed his brows at it before looking back up at Axton.

"Gotcha." Axton winked, and Salvador squeezed his hand tightly. He yanked their joined hands back up, poised for the final round.

"You got lucky, pendejo." He growled.

"With you?" The solider mused. "If only."

Salvador frowned and focused back on their hands. Hands clasped together, squeezed tight, pushing against each other. Salvador was probably pushing some kind of boundary, with the touching and the way he couldn't stop himself from hungrily taking Axton in with his eyes. But, in this moment, he didn't care. He just wanted to look at Axton, hold his hand tight in his, and let this night pass by so Salvador could go back to squashing any emotion that wasn't murderous rage down.

They were at a stalemate, both men pushing against each other in an easy to-and-fro. Salvador felt himself leaning forward across the table, setting his free hand down to stabilize himself. Axton leaned forward, too, faces close enough for noses to brush and foreheads to touch. Salvador felt his mind go dizzy as his senses were flooded with Axton, his musk, the warmth of his skin, the darkness of his eyes. Axton's nose brushed against his as he turned his head, and before Salvador could say anything, slightly chapped lips caught his with a soft sort of reverence _,_ and Axton was kissing him _._

Axton was _kissing_ him. 

It was a simple touch of lips, pressure against pressure, and yet it still sent an electric surge through Salvador's body, raw and unrefined. His hand instinctively tightened around Axton's, knuckles going white. Almost as suddenly as the kiss had begun, Axton pulled away, and Salvador's arm hit the table top with a thud. The Commando's face was still near to his, red with a mixture of drink and something else. Something Salvador must have been imagining.

"Ha." Axton smiled a much softer smile than Salvador had ever seen. "I win."

Salvador stared with wide eyes. He didn't know whether to scream or throw Axton over the balcony of the Crimson Raider's Headquarters. Or, a small voice in his head piped up, to grab him by the collar and kiss him ferociously.

He should say something; Axton's half lidded eyes were still on him, almost prying into him with their laziness.

"You cheated." Was all Salvador could murmur, brow furrow and voice thick.

Axton leaned away from his fellow Vault Hunter, taking the bottle of Rakk Ale and downing a big gulp before shrugging, "All's fair in love and war, Sal."

That kicked Salvador's heart against his ribcage. He cross the room and grabbed Axton by the front of his shirt. He pulled him up onto his knees, nose to nose with him again.

"Don't patronize me, you fuck." He growled. 

Axton's brows shot up, face slack with newfound sobriety. "Who said I was patronizing you?"

Salvador barred his teeth in a scowl, but footsteps up the stairs interrupted him before he could speak.

"Guys, you'll never guess what I rigged this Echo Device to do--" Gaige bounded into the room and stopped in her tracks, Zer0 close behind. "Oh. Are we... interrupting something?"

Salvador took a moment to catalog the scene they had just walked in on-- Salvador, gripping Axton's shirtfront in his fist, Axton on his knees, faces inches apart. He dropped his grip as if Axton was on fire and whirled around. He grabbed the bottle of Rakk Ale from the floor and stalked out to the balcony before he could hear the melancholic way Axton said, "No, you're not interrupting anything."

Salvador plopped himself onto the balcony, the cold night air of Sanctuary chilling him to the bone. He took a swig from the bottle, knowing full well that the harsh alcohol couldn't wash away the feeling of Axton's lips on his.

He let out a low, gravely curse to the sky, to the moon, to anyone. 


End file.
